Pa Pa, Pa Pa, Panda Neko

Pa Pa, Pa Pa, Panda Neko27 Jan 2011 19:39:52

The first of many pre-orders that I'm expecting from Japan this year has arrived in the mail on Monday afternoon.

When it comes to anime companies in 2010, one company that had a good year was Gainax. While part of it definitely can be accredited to Panty and Stocking, Gainax had another highlight earlier that year with Hanamaru Kindergarten, a cute tale of a kindergarten student who falls for her teacher, who also happens to be an old friend of her mother's. One of the more memorable characters in that show is Hiiragi, a very smart girl who tends to dress up in different outfits throughout the show. If you need an example of why she's popular among the viewers, all you need to do is watch the ED sequence for the second episode (each episode has its' own ED sequence):

Given how enjoyable Hiiragi was in Hanamaru Kindergarten, I was hoping that some piece of merchandise would come out and be available at regular online stores. Thus, when I found out that a plushie version of her was coming out, I immediately pre-ordered it once I saw an online store that was selling it. The plushie consists of her in of her more popular outfits, the Panda-Neko. For those not familiar with Hanamaru Kindergarten, the Panda-Neko is a popular cartoon character in that show’s universe. Besides the character’s look (which, as the name implies, consists of a cat whose fur resembles that of a panda), the character is also known for its’ theme song and dance, which can be seen performed by the show’s main characters in the video below (with Hiiragi sporting her Panda-Neko costume near the end):

This order was different from my previous orders since I ordered it from Amiami (instead of my usual places of Hobby Link Japan and Hobby Search), not to mention that this was my first order which required me to pay for it via Paypal (something to prepare me for later Hobby Search pre-orders, as they've switched to Paypal only after that site got hacked). However, once I got the e-mail to pay for the plush via Paypal, I got an understanding of how to utilize Paypal when it comes to pre-orders, and the check out process went well. Hence, come Monday, my Panda-Neko Hiiragi plush arrived in all its cosplay glory.

One pre-order down, two more to go for now (that doesn't mean I'll order other figures, although it's unlikely that I'll order ones that are already available unless supply begins to run short, as I'm currently in "save for Katsucon" mode).